Bittersweet Nostalgia
by lost-generations
Summary: Two weeks after her sister's funeral, Piper is cleaning out her room when she finds something hidden, something forgotten long ago from their childhood.


**A.N. This has been on my mind for a while, so I finally decided to make it into a story. I might make more short stories in the future, but I'm not sure, so stay tuned.**

 _I can't believe I'm about to do this._

A chill ran up my spine, but I refused to back down, not this time. I held a single box underneath my arm, Prue's name printed out on the side, and a roll of duct tape sat inside.

I ran a hand through my hair, and my stomach began to turn.

 _Come on Piper, you can do this._

I closed my eyes for a few moments and took a deep breath before reaching out and grabbing the door handle. It was ice-cold, and I felt tears well in my eyes, but I blinked them back. Bracing myself, I finally turned the handle, and with a loud groan, the door opened, revealing Prue's abandoned room. My body began trembling as I took a step forward, my feet sinking into the soft carpet. Placing the box down, I quickly began walking around the room. Clothes were sprawled on her bed, and I folded them carefully before resting them in the box. I did this almost robotically, refusing to let my emotions get the best of me. It almost felt unreal, I still couldn't believe that she was dead. It's been almost two weeks since her funereal, but it still felt like she was going to walk through the door at any moment.

But I also knew that it was real, I saw it, I saw _her._ I put my hand to my mouth and closed my eyes. I didn't want to think about it, I couldn't.

My eyes fell on her partially open closet, which held her leather jacket. As my hands began trembling, I picked it up, and held it in my arms for what seemed like an eternity. After a few moments, I folded it, and rested it in the box.

But it didn't feel right, I wasn't ready to let go of it just yet.

I shook my head and took it back out before sliding it on.

 _I can't get rid of this._

I continued wandering around her room, cleaning, and placing her items in the box. I stopped short as I saw an old doll of hers, and remembered the time we were in the attic, sifting through old boxes, deciding what we would keep and throw away. In the end, Prue decided to keep her old porcelain doll, to give to her future child.

 _And now it would be here, forever reminding me of what could've been._

I picked up the doll and placed it on top of the box before looking around some more. I smiled to myself as I remembered all the memories the three of us shared in this room. When we were younger, Prue and I shared this room, but Phoebe always made an excuse to be around us.

 _I wonder..._

I walked to the dresser and pulled it away from the wall before letting out a small laugh.

 _ **Piper + Prue + Phoebe** _ was carved into the wall. Underneath, the word **FOREVER,** was written in all caps. Prue and I put it in the wall the summer of 5th grade, the day before she went to camp.

I began crying silently, but formed a small smile as I carefully placed a hand on the words.

I remember having a conversation about this with her, a few weeks after we moved back into the manor.

 _I found Prue in her room, on the floor, staring at the wall blankly._

" _Hey, are you okay?"_

 _Prue looked up suddenly, and gave a small laugh. "Yeah, I'm fine," she replied. "Come here, look what I found." I walked over and she pushed the dresser away to reveal the words we carved in the wall when we were kids._

" _Oh my God, I can't believe that's still there," I giggled. "It's been forever."_

" _Yeah, I know, I thought Grams would have gotten rid of it by now."_

" _She probably never saw it," I suggested, and Prue nodded, running her fingers over it._

" _Are you painting over it?" I asked, crossing my arms and leaning into the wall as I looked at her in amusement._

" _Are you kidding? I'm never getting rid of this," she replied. "It's perfect."_

I snapped out of my thoughts and stood up before walking to the dresser. Her camera sat in it's case, untouched for what seemed like an eternity. I played around with it for a while, before placing it in the box. By the time, I finished, the box was filled to the brim with clothes, books, and all her other belongings. I took a step back and looked at the room's new condition. All her clothes were put away, her walls were bare, her framed pictures no longer hanging on it. Her dresser top was completely empty, and her books were no longer visible. It looked as empty as it felt.

 _ **KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.**_

"Hey Piper," Phoebe said softly as she walked over to me. "You're done already?"

"Yeah, I think I am."

Phoebe picked up the porcelain doll and smiled to herself.

"Are you giving this away?"

"No, I think I might just give this to my future daughter. That's what she would have wanted."

Phoebe nodded before resting her head on my shoulder.

"It feels so weird without her here," she commented.

"I know."

"What are we going to do with all her stuff?"

"I don't want to get rid of it," I replied honestly.

"Maybe we can keep it in the attic?"

"Yeah, maybe."

After a few moments of silence, I picked up the box. "Come on, let's go downstairs."

Phoebe nodded and exited the room, leaving me alone. I scanned the room once last time, my eyes falling on the wall that hid the words we carved out so long ago. One hand rested on the doorknob, while I juggled the box underneath the other.

"I love you," I whispered into the room before closing the door and going downstairs.


End file.
